Revised Abstract: Consuming (Real)ity Stardom

While reading everyone's abstracts for the peer-review session during our last class, it occurred to me that my own abstract ("Consuming Celebrity") is probably too broad of a topic to be approached in the final paper. I've narrowed my topic down to reality stardom, and have re-written a new abstract:

Consuming (Real)ity Stardom

The huge success of the reality TV format in the last two decades has revolutionized the parameters of “stardom” to include everyday people plucked from obscurity who have skyrocketed to the celebrity stratosphere. In my paper, I will argue that reality television shows indicate a democratization of previously conceived notions of “stardom,” and that the structural format of these products place heavy emphasis on the consumer as judge of more realistic character archetypes. Ultimately, this phenomenon indicates a devaluation of the scripted narrative in favor of a more (real)istic television format that encourages consumer identification through heavily mediated “authentic” melodrama.

First, I will begin by contextualizing the boom in the reality TV format as a popular form of mass entertainment, in which “real” people are reduced to character archetypes, as first exemplified by “The Real World.” I will compare this to Jib Fowles’ understanding of the “Star Village,” in which celebrities fulfill a societal need for archetypes. The reality format has led to an increase in the number of acceptable “celebrities,” therefore devaluating the term “star.” However, reality stars are also perceived as being more disposable than legitimate actors.

Next, I will consider the structural format of reality TV shows from the perspective of consuming bodies within a specific and fetishized locale. In both “lifestyle” and “competition-based” shows, the overemphasis on people in relation to their location reveals how consumers understand lifestyle as inseparable from environment. From “The Hills” romanticized notion of Hollywood to the myriad of “Survivor” destinations, the body’s relationship to location is of utmost importance. The competitive nature of these shows, in which contestants compete in gladiator-style tests of strength and sexuality, provides rich fodder for the consumer to analyze.

Particularly in competition-based reality programming, the consumer is positioned as both judge and fan. In shows like “American Idol,” the judging of a contestant’s “star quality” is a precursor to active participation by the fan in voting for a favorite. Fans are asked to identify with the judges, and weigh in on a number of factors- from personality, to quality of their work, to their eligibility as a potential mate. This complicates Julie Wilson’s article “Star Testing,” and brings her argument into a context that is not necessarily specific to women, and does not posit such an “idealized” picture of stardom. Instead, the reality star is a more accessible point for testing and self-evaluation.

From this analysis, I will conclude that the reality TV boom may be an indication of growing disinterest in scripted narrative, in favor of a more “real” depiction of melodrama, as lived by everyday people. However, reality TV purposely erases its own construction. By re-interpreting Lynne Joyrich’s article about TV and melodrama, I will argue that the reality television form draws the consumer into a world of stardom that is perceived as being more “real,” and therefore, more authentic.